O'Brien gathering information on drug seizure

STATE COLLEGE - Penn State football coach Bill O'Brien said Monday he was gathering information after campus police seized drugs and drug paraphernalia from the apartment of wide receiver Devon Smith and former defensive end Jack Crawford.

Neither Smith, who'll be a senior in the fall, nor Crawford, who has exhausted his eligibility and is preparing for the NFL draft, has been charged in connection with the search.

"That was just reported to me this morning, so I'm still gathering information on that," O'Bren said. "We'll have something at a later date to report on that. But I don't really have a comment on that at this point."

Campus police said an officer entered the players' apartment at Nittany Apartments March 14 to investigate a potential break-in. A second-floor window screen had been damaged and a table placed underneath it, according to the search warrant.

When officers entered the apartment, they found a grinder commonly associated with marijuana use, a digital scale and several blunts in an ash tray. After the search warrant was issued, police seized blunts, a bottle of liquor, a grinder, a scale, a plastic bag with suspected marijuana and a prescription drug bottle with wide receiver Curtis Drake's name on it.

Smith was in uniform and on the field Monday for Penn State's first spring practice under O'Brien.

•Drake moves to defense: Curtis Drake, who has had an injury-plagued career at Penn State, has moved from wide receiver to cornerback, at least for spring practice.

Drake, a fourth-year junior, missed the 2010 season with a fractured leg. Last season, he played eight games, caught five passes for 102 yards and one touchdown and carried five times for 52 yards.

In December, Drake was involved in a locker room altercation with quarterback Matt McGloin, who suffered a concussion. Drake did not travel with the team to Dallas for the TicketCity Bowl.

"He started with a clean slate with me, just like all 126 guys on the team started with a clean slate with me," Penn State coach Bill O'Brien said. "Curtis and I have had many conversations and I'll keep those between Curtis and I."

With no starters returning in the secondary, Drake will compete for playing time with senior Stephon Morris, juniors Mike Wallace and Derrick Thomas and sophomore Adrian Amos.

"Curtis has good size, good feet, good hips and instinctiveness," O'Brien said. "I think he's a guy that can contribute over there. He's got to keep up his end of the bargain by doing well in school and keeping his nose clean."

•Massaro ready to go: Defensive end Pete Massaro began spring practice Monday almost a year after he suffered a torn ACL in his left knee.

Before missing last season, Massaro started 11 games in 2010 and made eight tackles for loss and 31/2 sacks. He was redshirted in 2008 and missed the 2009 season with a knee injury.

"He's had a good winter," Penn State coach Bill O'Brien said. "Pete is a hard-working guy. He's a typical Penn State guy to me. He's what we're all about. He's going to be hard to block."

•Mauti recovering: Linebacker Michael Mauti, who suffered a torn ACL in his left knee last September, will be held out of contact drills during spring practice.

Coach Bill O'Brien said he expects Mauti, who has had an injury-riddled career, to be ready for the season opener Sept. 1 against Ohio.

"Mike has had a heck of a winter in the things that he has been able to do," O'Brien said. "He's definitely one of the core players on this football team, from his leadership and his work ethic. He's a Penn State guy, so it's been great to get to know Mike."

•Dukes sits out: Tailback Curtis Dukes, who has played sparingly in his first two seasons, will not practice this spring, coach Bill O'Brien said.

"He's going to concentrate on academics," O'Brien said, "to try to get his grades up and then get back to us in the summertime hopefully, so you won't see a lot of him."

Playing behind Silas Redd last season, Dukes carried 41 times for 237 yards and one touchdown in seven games. His absence leaves former wide receiver Bill Belton and walk-on Derek Day as Redd's backups.

"We have an incoming freshman, Akeel Lynch, who will be starting school in the summer," O'Brien said, "so we're looking forward to good things from him."

•Sixth commit: Defensive end Curtis Cothran of Council Rock North became the sixth high school junior to commit to Penn State Monday.

The 6-5, 235-pound Cothran visited Penn State over the weekend and chose the Nittany Lions over offers from other schools such as Connecticut, Rutgers, Maryland, Northwestern, Purdue, Syracuse, Temple and Virginia.

Neither Rivals.com or Scout.com rates him, but 247 Sports gives him three stars.

•Berks update: Wilson grad Pat Zerbe, who tore the ACL in his right knee during preseason camp in August, was on the field in helmet and shorts with the rest of the team during non-contact drills.

Zerbe, a junior fullback, is on schedule to be ready for preseason camp.